Monte Carlo

Disclaimer: Except for OCs, the characters here and the world they inhabit are the creation and property of JK Rowling.

"Ugh... Make it stop."

Severus woke a little and snuggled closer to his wife. She struggled against him and pushed away. "Make it... ugh... stop."

He didn't move. Katherine rolled over and struggled more, eventually pushing him off the bed. "I said... Make it STOP!"

She got up and made her way to the bathroom. Severus could hear her throwing up. He followed her and held her hair back from her face. "What can I do?"

"Make it stop... Ohhhh..."

"Make what stop?"

"All this up-and-down and side-to-side."

Severus suddenly understood. "We can't avoid it, dear. I didn't realize you got seasick."

"I never have, before."

"It must be the baby."

A new spasm hit her stomach, and she was unable to talk until it was over. "Would it be possible to take the baby out, just for a few minutes until my tummy settles down?"

"You know it doesn't work that way. You were feeling fine last night."

"That's not the right answer," she said, turning back to the toilet.

Finally, she thought she was done and leaned back against the bathtub. Severus handed her a damp washcloth, and she wiped off her face. He summoned a house-elf and requested some toast and weak tea. Then, he pulled his cleaned-up wife into his arms, holding her loosely.

"I don't know," she moaned. "I feel like I could eat..."

"Let's try it," he answered. "It's almost morning and your stomach may be too empty. If you like the toast, we can try something else, too."

He helped her back into the bed. She felt a little better after eating the toast and nearly like herself after a more substantial breakfast. Her husband held her in his arms, and somehow the steadiness of his heartbeat overrode the motion of the boat. She fell into an uneasy sleep. Severus made sure she had small snacks from time to time for the rest of the short trip. However, Katherine was grateful to arrive in Monte Carlo and went straight to their suite at the hotel. She sent a note by Owl and then got right into the thankfully motionless bed to rest for a long while.

Severus slipped away and went to an Apothecary shop he knew about. He found some ready-made potions and purchased supplies for another. It took some trial and error, but eventually he found a mix that perked his wife up enough to continue her work.

They arranged that she would go to the Casino before he did. He would hang back to assess whether they were still being followed, and he would join her later. They had done some shopping after Katherine felt better, and she had a gown that she thought would set the proper tone for her investigation.

The men who had followed them in Venice were not seen. Katherine wished she knew more about those men. Did they work for the person who had tried to hex them or the other person in the altercation on the island? Were they unrelated to either, indicating a new danger?

She caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror in the lobby of the hotel as she left. The bodice of her gown was covered with tiny dark-amethyst-colored beads. Its deep neckline made sure that anyone looking at her would first notice the enhancements that pregnancy had brought to her figure. The many gathers of sheer fabric in her skirt were designed to hide her thickening waistline. The skirt's gathers also hid the slit that went to the middle of her left thigh. The diamonds Severus had given her a year before were around her neck. Katherine nodded at herself, watching as the cloud of her hair settled back into place, and continued on her way.

She wandered close to the Backgammon tables, where her appointment would come to meet her. She kept her face toward the door but glanced around at the rest of the room from time to time. Nevertheless, she jumped when she heard a familiar voice behind her.

"I see you've put on weight."

Katherine turned and saw a former acquaintance and, she hated to admit it, lover. "Hello, Charles."

"That's the best you can do for your Bonnie Prince?"

"It was a long time ago, and I confess I'm bewildered by your opening line."

"You're even more beautiful than when I last saw you, and I thought nothing would equal you then." He came closer and whispered into her ear. "Your breasts are magnificent. I can't wait to take you to my rooms."

"Please don't talk like that, Charles. There's nothing to wait for. It's been over a long time."

"It never ended for me. I'm ready to begin again."

She looked up at him, a little sadly. "I'm sorry. It never quite began for me the first time."

"Ah, then let's pretend we are beginning now." He looked around the room and signaled for a waiter to bring champagne. "Would you look at that?" he asked. He pointed at a new arrival. "Are those snake-skin boots? Why would anyone match those with evening wear?"

"If you knew the snake, you wouldn't ask. Farewell, Charles." Katherine walked over to her husband and slid a hand up the lapel of his jacket. He leaned over and kissed her. He meant to just softly brush his lips over hers, but she put something extra into it. The kiss was soft and welcoming at first but soon became a compulsion. Neither could break it off. Neither wanted to.

"Ahem."

They separated and Katherine gave a look between apology and annoyance. Sighing, she half turned and said, "Baron Charles von Ulm, may I present Professor Severus Snape?"

Charles clicked his heels as he shook hands. "Any friend of Katherine's, of course... Snape? The famous Potions master? Is one of your potions responsible for Katherine's delightful new curves?"

Severus looked to his wife, who shrugged and raised an eyebrow. He smirked and said, "In a manner of speaking, yes."

"Am I to understand that you are now her lover? I warn you; I shall be a relentless rival for her affections."

Severus looked at Katherine appraisingly. The look she gave back to him supplied all he needed to know. "I have no fears of that battle."

"Ah, but you should fear me. I fully intend that she will be mine again."

Katherine looked toward her husband, so that the other man could not see her, with a plea in her eyes. Severus raised an eyebrow and smirked. He kissed her hand and calmly said, "We know what road is paved with good intentions, don't we?"

A newcomer arrived at the Casino. His hair was dark but his features were unmistakable. This was the person Katherine had come to meet. She turned first to her husband and then to the Baron. "If you gentlemen will excuse me, I have an overwhelming desire to play tonight." She slipped away and sat at one of the game boards. As the two men watched, she was joined by the man who had just arrived.

"How did you meet?" asked Charles.

Severus took a drink of the champagne he had been handed. "She was hired to investigate me. The attraction was immediate and overpowering. You?"

The other man's face took on a wistful look. "She was hired to locate my cousin, and I traveled with her. I wanted her from the first, but she made me wait until it was all over. When she finally became mine, I vowed to keep her forever."

Snape couldn't resist the chance to jab at the other man. "Yet it ended between you."

"Yes. We were here in Monte Carlo. She was staying at the Hotel de Paris, but she wouldn't let me stay with her. We went everywhere together, and I planned to make a permanent arrangement of it. She's not pureblood, but she knows how to behave in any situation. I gave her a parure of diamonds and pearls that had been in my family for generations. We spent the most incredible night of my life together. I'd never been with a woman who made me feel that way. The next night we went to an Embassy ball. She was stunning, regal in some sort of pink and silver gown and those diamonds and pearls. The concierge even thought she looked like a noblewoman and called her 'Baroness.'"

Severus gasped into his champagne glass.

Charles looked at him. "Am I boring you?"

"Oh, no, this is fascinating."

"There's not much more. I had kept back the ring that went with the jewelry set. I was going to give it to her that very night. She told me she had a headache and left the ball early. I never saw her again until this night."

"That was the last you heard of her?"

"I saw the jewels. She had donated them to be auctioned for a hospital in Norway. Of course I bought them back. I intend to make sure she keeps them the next time."

"Are they worth a great deal?"

"They named a children's wing for her."

"I see." Severus looked over at Katherine, who was coolly rolling her dice and looked as though she was exchanging mere pleasantries over the game board. Her loyalties were never in doubt, but it was interesting to learn that she could turn down so much money when she didn't love the man in question. She was wealthy, but not as rich as that.

"Tell me," started Charles, breaking into his thoughts. "That fishing lure around her neck. Do you know where that came from?"

Severus looked at the diamonds and remembered how she had looked wearing them in his bed at Hogwarts. "It was a gift from her husband, not long before they married."

"I understood that Cyrus Stanton was essentially destitute."

"She's had another husband." Severus wasn't sure why Katherine did not mention their marriage to this man. Given all the questions surrounding them, he was sure she had her reasons.

Suddenly Katherine stood from her table and handed chips and galleons over to her opponent. She spoke loudly enough for Severus to hear. "I'm sorry, but I can't double again. This game has become too rich for me."

When she returned to the other men, she smiled up at Severus and said, "I'm exhausted, can we get to bed?"

Charles was quick to respond. "You are positively peaked. Your face is completely white. Shall I walk you to your suite?"

Pink flared on Katherine's face as she shook her head. "You're kind, Charles, but no. Severus will look after me." She stood within the shelter of his body, a sign the other wizard could not help but notice.

"Katherine." She looked at the wizard she had once spent so much time with. She saw the hurt expression in his face and smiled kindly. "I'm ready to start where we left off," he said. "I never stopped loving you."

"Oh, Charles," she said, touching the side of his face with her hand. "I'm so sorry. I never could feel that way for you. Please forget me." She looked up at Severus and placed her other hand trustingly on his arm. He guided her to the coat check and helped her into her cloak. She sagged against him as they made their way to the hotel.

She could barely wait for him to open the door to their suite. She brushed past him and moved quickly toward the bathroom. He shut the door and locked it, then set aside their outer garments and followed her. She was sitting on the floor, the skirt of her dress pooled around her except for the slit that showed her leg from the lacy top of her stockings to the foot that was half out of a sandal. Her hand was over her forehead.

She saw him standing in the doorway. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. "I hoped he would be out of town."

"How long ago did you know him?"

"Three years."

"Did you care for him?"

"Not really. I told you before, and it's true, that I've never known love. I thought being with Charles was just in fun, but I was terribly naïve. All sorts of people had developed expectations, and when I realized what they were, I had to leave."

"And we come to your being called "Baroness" at the Paris."

"He mentioned that?" Her face flamed with remembered humiliation.

He nodded.

"Yes," she whispered. "I suddenly realized that what was just a convenient situation for me had become important to him. I couldn't breathe, and I had to go."

"Why didn't you keep the jewels he gave you?"

"I would have, but I discovered their true value. It wouldn't have been right."

"Why didn't you give them back directly?"

"I couldn't face him. If he had become sad, I would have felt obligated to do something... I might have married him out of pity. So I donated them to that charity, knowing he would be contacted and would buy the jewels back."

Severus knelt down and dabbed at her face with a washcloth. "I'm getting better at this, I think."

"You don't mind? I'm disgusting."

"You're beautiful. Tomorrow, I'm going to locate some ingredients to make a different potion specifically for you, and you'll be somewhat better after that."

She looked up balefully. He leaned down and lifted her to her feet. "Why didn't you want him to know we're married?"

"I don't know. It's a feeling I have. It was a little odd that he almost seemed to know I would be there tonight. I was a bit surprised that he didn't mention our marriage. We haven't been seeking publicity, but it was in the Daily Prophet. Yet he was acting as though he believed that he and I could continue from where we left off. I don't know what to make of it, and I get very protective of information under those sort of circumstances."

He digested it before changing the subject. "What do you think of the idea of coming to bed?"

"Hmmm... I don't know why, but now that I've been sick, I feel as though I can do anything. Let me brush my teeth, first."

Severus stood behind her as she brushed her teeth, rubbing her shoulders and whispering lewd comments into her ears. Katherine made faces in the mirror at him. As she finished rinsing off her toothbrush, he unzipped the back of her gown, letting it fall to the floor. He half carried her to the bed and made good on his comments. She thought that she did very little, but she was still breathless after the passion they shared.

He ordered her a small meal that would settle her stomach and watched her eat it. "How was you game with Omar Malfoy?"

"He's quite a fascinating gentleman. He was able to tell me some surprising things although nothing really helps me."

"Such as?"

"He said you should have inherited everything instead of Thaddeus Prince, but since your father is a Muggle, you were ineligible. He was very impressed to see you in person, by the way, and interested in all the wrong ways. What with all the admirers we've stumbled across of yours, I was extremely put out."

He chuckled. "We've each run across a former lover on this trip. I would consider it even." His face got more serious. "Omar's information doesn't help you?"

"I'm not sure. It doesn't explain where the money is, now, although I suppose it does give a clue about where the money goes."

"We're well out of it. It's bad enough that someone is trying to kill you without worrying about the money, too."

"You have no proof that someone wants to hurt me."

"We're not going round on that again." He frowned at her, and she looked sheepish. "Where to, next?"

"I'll have to go back to London and check through some other documents at the Ministry."

"Can it wait until after Christmas? I'd like to spend the holiday at the island."

"That suits me." They both went to sleep dreaming of palm trees and relaxing afternoons on their own beach.